John Jarrold

Wizard’s Tower is delighted to announce the acquisition of World English and ebook rights to two books in the Imperial Vices series by Chaz Brenchley. The agent was John Jarrold. Of the Emperor’s Kindness will be launched at the World Fantasy Convention in Brighton later this year. Of the City’s Charity is scheduled for 2026.

Feremendas is an age-old empire, settled and certain. Clath is an alliance of smaller kingdoms, upstart and expansive. They are the two great powers of the world.

Malance is from Verantha, one of the little countries caught between. She was in Feremendas-city, working as an interpreter and having the time of her life, when Clath invaded her homeland and swallowed it whole. Bereft and alone, as other Veranthans slip away from the imperium to seek their families or join the resistance, she’s ready to follow—except that the emperor forbids it.

So long as the embassy remains open, Verantha still survives, at least as an idea, a seed, a hope. But an embassy demands an ambassador, and the official appointee has gone. Everyone’s gone, except Malance…

For more than a year now, Her Excellency Malance Hermentine has been mourning her lost land and struggling to find some balance in this new and bewildering life of hers. Ambassador by imperial decree for a country that no longer exists, she has a large and decaying house to manage with a ramshackle and eccentric household, and no budget at all. She has allies and enemies at court; she has beloved friends throughout the city, and one brewing relationship in the palace itself.

And now the emperor warns her that things are about to get worse…

Emperors, of course, do nothing without a reason.

Publisher, Cheryl Morgan, said, “When Chaz sent me the book I was entranced and read it in a single sitting. I’m sure readers will fall in love with Mal and her young friends as I did. But they should never forget that emperors are a devious bunch. Politics can turn deadly serious.”

For further information please email: info@wizardstowerpress.com; or John Jarrold: e-mail: j.jarrold@btinternet.com  phone: 01797 227426.

PS Publishing have acquired printed book rights in a new, untitled story collection by Neil Williamson – featuring new, unpublished material as well as previously published and award nominated stories. The theme of the collection is strange inheritances and weird bequests.

Neil Williamson was born in Motherwell, Scotland. He is a resident of Glasgow.

His books include: novels, The Moon King (“A truly unique fantasy. Sure to be one of the best debuts of this or any other year.” –  World Fantasy Award winning author, Jeff VanderMeer), which was runner-up for the BSFA award and finalist for the British Fantasy Society Robert Holdstock award and Queen Of Clouds (“A truly unique and powerful work, intricate and ingenious.” – Arthur C. Clarke Award winning author, Adrian Tchaikovsky); short story collections, The Ephemera and Secret Language (both British Fantasy Award finalists); anthologies, Nova Scotia: New Scottish Speculative Fiction (World Fantasy Award finalist), Nova Scotia vol 2: New Speculative Fiction From Scotland, Thirty Years of Rain and Gallus; and novellas, The Memoirist and Charlie Says.

The agent was John Jarrold.

Frank Festa at Festa Verlag has acquired German limited-edition rights in the Three Births of Daoloth novels by Ramsey Campbell:

THE SEARCHING DEAD, BORN TO THE DARK and  THE WAY OF THE WORM.

The agent was John Jarrold.

Ramsey Campbell is the doyen of horror novelists, a multiple award winner.  He is the only living horror writer to appear in the Oxford Companion to English Literature. He was awarded an Honorary Fellowship of Liverpool John Moores University in 2015.

PRAISE FOR THE SEARCHING DEAD:

“Beautifully written, a masterful story from a master of horror fiction, as well as a master of fiction in general, Ramsey Campbell’s novel, The Searching Dead is strong on style, atmosphere, and the creeps. Time will show that Campbell will be remembered as one of the greats of all time. He has long surpassed Lovecraft, one of his major influences, and has gone on to influence others. Check it out.” — Joe Lansdale

“This is Campbell at the height of his powers, proving once again that he is a master of the genre.” — Publishers Weekly Starred Review

“A return to and a revisioning of some of his earliest imaginings, the trilogy is a kind of autobiography of its protagonist, in which his lifelong struggle with a supernatural agency occurs against the backdrop of post-war British history. The result is a magisterial work, though such a description scants the novels’ propulsive readability. It’s another remarkable achievement in a career full of them.” — Locus Magazine

“The first book in his upcoming “The Three Births of Daoloth” trilogy, The Searching Dead is Ramsey Campbell at the peak of his craft, the literary equivalent of a well-aged bottle of Balvenie.” — HorrorDNA

“This novel is not only the start of an awesome horror epic by a master, but also a compelling coming-of-age story about a budding writer finding his way in a terrifying world.” — Library Journal

PRAISE FOR BORN TO THE DARK:

“Campbell’s writing is intimate, darkly funny, and deeply human, balancing edge-of-the-seat suspense with heartfelt character development. This delightfully unsettling sequel does not disappoint.” — Publishers Weekly

“I’m very much looking forward to the third and final installment of this excellent trilogy.” ― Horror Delve

“Campbell is on familiar ground with the use of dreams, children in jeopardy and a misunderstood protagonist at odds with almost all the familiar anchors in his life – his family, his friends, his workplace – while in the background there is the looming and strengthening threat of horror from beyond. Is there any hope for mankind?” — Concatenation

“Avid readers of cosmic horror will be satisfied with the read and will no doubt find themselves ordering the next and final volume, The Way of the Worm, as soon as possible.” — Rougeski Reads

PRAISE FOR THE WAY OF THE WORM:

“Horror readers who are fans of cosmic horror and cults will enjoy this novel, and those who haven’t read the previous two volumes will still be able to follow along. Fans of the recent Netflix show Midnight Mass will devour this work.” — Booklist

“With The Way of the Worm, Campbell’s cosmic trilogy comes to a triumphant conclusion.”

— S.T. Joshi

“A return to and a revisioning of some of his earliest imaginings, the trilogy is a kind of autobiography of its protagonist, in which his lifelong struggle with a supernatural agency occurs against the backdrop of post-war British history. The result is a magisterial work, though such a description scants the novels’ propulsive readability. It’s another remarkable achievement in a career full of them.” — Locus Magazine

“There is little doubt that Ramsey Campbell’s trilogy―for the three novels must be regarded as a tightly knit unity―will take its place among the stellar accomplishments in the realm of weird fiction. I struggle to find any trio of novels in our field that could match its achievement―an achievement that extends not merely to its deft portrayal of numerous characters over six decades and the impeccable elegance and mellifluousness of its prose, but above all to the grimly terrifying nature of its weird manifestations.” — S.T. Joshi

Film-maker, screenwriter, producer and novelist Guillermo del Toro has tweeted about Ramsey Campbell: “An absolute master of modern horror. And a damn fine writer at that.”

Lucida have acquired Chinese rights in award-winning author Kij Johnson’s debut collection,  AT THE MOUTH OF THE RIVER OF BEES. They are a boutique new publisher founded during the pandemic by veteran/young editors, and have quickly established themselves as a publisher of unique taste and able to discover hidden gems. They’re acquired a number of Spanish and German titles, including books by Mariana Enriquez and Angelica Gorodischer.

The deal was done by Gray Tan of the Grayhawk Agency on behalf of the John Jarrold Literary Agency.

The author’s shorter fiction has won three Nebulas, three World Fantasy Awards, and a Hugo. She also writes for tabletop roleplaying games. Her  short stories and collections have been reprinted many times all over Europe and Asia. Her World Fantasy Award-winning novella The Dream-Quest of Vellitt Boe in 2016 was a successful reinvention of Lovecraft.

Sun Color have acquired Taiwanese rights in The River Bank by Kij Johnson.

The deal was done by Gray Tan of the Grayhawk Agency on behalf of the John Jarrold Literary Agency.

The River Bank is a  comic adult sequel to The Wind in the Willows, which assumes that two female Animals come to live on the same river bank as Mole, Rat, Toad and Badger: a lady novelist, Beryl (who is a Mole), and her companion, the Rabbit. This of course disrupts the status quo, and the story ends up being a mix of high comedy and lyrical nature-pieces, very much in the late-Edwardian manner.

The author’s shorter fiction has won three Nebulas, three World Fantasy Awards, and a Hugo. She also writes for tabletop roleplaying games. Her  short stories and collections have been reprinted many times all over Europe and Asia. Her World Fantasy Award-winning novella The Dream-Quest of Vellitt Boe in 2016 was a successful reinvention of Lovecraft – and The River Bank is a satirical engagement with gender (and class). It is definitely not a children’s book!